Printed inner box
3-ply corrugated, printed with your brand, the design name, capacity and code — so the right box is picked from the godown without opening it. Usually a half dozen or a dozen.
Corrugated packaging · Lahore
Glassware & Crockery Boxes
Printed inner boxes, a partition for every glass, gift boxes with windows, and the master carton they all travel in — made to your glassware, in Lahore.
Glass travels in two boxes
A drinking glass leaves the factory in an inner box — usually six glasses, a half dozen — and a number of inner boxes travel together in a master carton. The inner is the box a shopkeeper sees, so it is printed. The master carton is the box the loader, the truck and the godown see, so it is strong.
We make both, and the partitions that go inside them, at our plant in Mehmood Booti, Lahore. We have supplied the glassware trade before, and we specify the two boxes together — because the master carton is sized around the inner, and the inner around the glass.
Reading a packing line: (1 × 6) × 12 = 72
Glass tableware makers in Pakistan print their packing as a formula on their product lists. It reads from the inside out:
1 glass
Measured at its widest point — usually the rim
× 6Inner box of 6
A half dozen, each glass in its own partition cell
× 12Master carton
Twelve inner boxes, laid four by three
(1 × 6) × 12 = 72 glasses in one master carton
| Part | Means | The box it decides |
|---|---|---|
| (1 × 6) | Six glasses in one inner box — a half dozen | The inner box, and the partition inside it |
| × 12 | Twelve inner boxes in one master carton | The master carton's size and arrangement |
| = 72 | Seventy-two glasses in the master carton | The master carton's weight, and so its ply |
Send us your line in this form and we already know most of the specification. If you do not have one yet, the count is yours to choose — 72, 48 and 36 are all twelve, eight or six inners of six. What limits it is weight: a master carton a person cannot lift safely is the one that gets dropped. See what is a master carton?
Everything a glass set is packed in
Partition
A slotted grid giving every glass its own cell, so glass never touches glass. Inside the inner box, or inside the master carton when there are no inners.
Gift box
Printed duplex board or corrugated, with a die-cut window to show the glasses or a carry handle cut into the box. For gift sets, weddings and Eid.
Master carton
The outer carton the inner boxes travel in — usually 5-ply, marked with the design, the count and the carton number. Plain or one colour; it is the box nobody displays.
Why glass breaks in a carton
Inside a carton, the danger to a glass is mostly other glass — rim against rim, base against side, a thousand small knocks while the truck moves between Lahore and Karachi. Three things stop it:
- A cell for every glass. A partition keeps each one apart, and it is cheap next to one broken carton.
- A snug fit. A cell that is too loose lets the glass rattle, which is the failure the partition exists to prevent. A cell that is too tight tears as the glass goes in.
- A master carton that does not crush. When cartons are stacked in a godown the bottom one carries the rest. If it bows, the inners inside it bow, and the glasses meet. That is what the ply is for.
Measuring a glass for its box
Most tumblers are tapered, so the widest point is the rim, not the base — and the rim is the measurement the cell is built around. For a stemmed glass it is the widest point of the bowl. For a mug, measure across the handle, not just the body.
- Height of the glass, in inches
- Its widest point, in inches
- How many to an inner box, and in what arrangement — 3 × 2 for six, 4 × 3 for twelve
- How many inner boxes to a master carton
- The weight of one packed inner box
The partition takes up space of its own, so a box sized to the glasses alone will not close over glasses and a partition. We work the cell out from the glass, the inner box from the cells, and the master carton from the inners. If you want to check a size yourself, the box size calculator turns product dimensions into the internal carton size to ask for.
Crockery and dinner sets
Mugs, cups, bowls, plates, tea sets and dinner sets have the same problem as glass — nothing hard may touch anything else hard — solved in a different way for each shape:
Mugs and cups
Partition cells, like glasses. The handle makes the cell wider than the body, so measure across it.
Plates
Stacked flat with a layer pad between them, so the weight spreads and no plate rides on another's rim.
Bowls
Nested or in cells, depending on the shape and how much the set can take being stacked inside itself.
Dinner and tea sets
Many shapes in one box, so usually a fitted insert holding each piece in its place, inside a printed box that is itself the gift.
Which ply for glassware
An inner box of six glasses is normally 3-ply: it carries little weight and the master carton protects it. The master carton carries everything and takes all the handling, so it is usually 5-ply. A carton of heavy mugs or a big dinner set can need more.
The deciding number is the weight of the full master carton. Our 3-ply, 5-ply or 7-ply guide gives the load ranges typically used for each, and the ply and board grade selector matches your weight against them.
What to send us
- What you are packing — tumblers, mugs, jars, a dinner set — and every piece in a set
- The height and widest point of each item, in inches
- Your packing line, for example (1 × 6) × 12 = 72, or the count you want
- Which boxes you need — inner, partition, gift box, master carton, or all of them
- Your artwork, and how many colours it uses
- How many cartons, and where they are going
That is enough for a specification. Send it on the quote form or ring either number at the foot of this page.
Common questions
What is the difference between an inner box and a master carton for glassware?
The inner box holds a small set of glasses — usually six, a half dozen — and is often printed with the brand and the design name, because it is the box a shopkeeper puts on the shelf. The master carton is the outer corrugated box that a number of inner boxes travel in. A common arrangement is twelve inner boxes of six in one master carton, which tableware makers write as (1 × 6) × 12 = 72.
How many glasses go in one master carton?
Whatever divides cleanly and gives a carton a person can lift. Seventy-two — twelve inner boxes of six — is a count glass tableware makers in Pakistan print on their own packing lists, and 48 and 36 are the same idea with fewer inners. Heavy tumblers and mugs reach a safe carrying weight sooner than thin glasses, so weigh one packed inner box and multiply before you settle the count.
Do drinking glasses need a partition inside the box?
If glass can touch glass, yes. Two glasses knocking together in a moving truck is the breakage a carton is there to stop, and a partition gives every glass its own cell so that it cannot. It is usually far cheaper than the breakage it prevents. A partition can go inside each inner box, or directly inside the master carton if the glasses travel without inner boxes.
Which ply is used for glassware cartons?
The inner box is normally 3-ply, because it carries only six glasses and is protected by the carton around it. The master carton carries everything and takes all the handling, so it is usually 5-ply. The weight of the full carton decides it — see our 3-ply, 5-ply or 7-ply guide for the load ranges typically used.
Can you print the brand, design name and code on each inner box?
Yes. Inner boxes are printed at our plant, from a single-colour mark up to a full retail box. Printing the design name, the capacity and a code on every inner means the right box can be picked from a godown without opening it.
Do you make gift boxes for glass sets?
Yes. For gift sets we make printed duplex board boxes as well as corrugated ones, with a die-cut window to show the glasses or a carry handle cut into the box. A gift box usually still needs a partition or an insert inside, and still travels in a master carton.
Do you pack crockery and dinner sets too?
Yes — mugs, cups, bowls, plates, tea sets and dinner sets. The problem is the same as with glass: nothing hard may touch anything else hard. Cups and mugs go into partition cells, plates are separated by layer pads, and a mixed set usually needs a fitted insert. Tell us every piece in the set and we will work out the box around them.
Have you made packing for glassware before?
Yes. We have supplied cartons to the glassware trade from our plant in Mehmood Booti, Lahore, and we make the inner boxes, partitions, gift boxes and master cartons in the same place.
Before you specify
Worth reading first
No price list, and that is deliberate
Tell us what you need to pack
Every job is specified for one customer, so cost depends on size, board, quantity and print. Describe the product and the journey it makes, and we will propose a specification and quote it.
Request a quote